“Alexa, stop!” Kale's voice rang out behind me. I sprinted down the red-carpeted hall; the door to Harley's room, far but in my sights.
I ran straight into a wall of energy, thick and pulsating. It stopped me dead in my tracks. Arys. He was here. My gut had already known it, but my head didn't want to see. I couldn't deny it now. I could feel his power running high and hot like it was crawling all over me, through me.
If it had belonged to anyone else, it would have crippled me. As it was, this power was a part of me. It sought to draw me in, and that's when I felt Harley's energy running at a high frequency, mingled in with Arys'. It was weaker than the power Arys commanded. Our union had given him strength greater than that his own sire possessed.
Harley had been right when he said I held more power than he did. I hadn't been able to feel it then.
Kale came to a halt beside me but kept his distance. “Don't go in there, Alexa. Trust me on this. You don't want to be here right now.”
“Why not?” I whispered, my voice low and near inaudible.
He said nothing, merely shaking his head solemnly. Kale's pity was not something I wanted. The closed door before me was nothing but a minor barrier. It would be so easy to see what was on the other side. I knew already in my very soul that it was bad. Really bad. Yet, I couldn't walk away blind.
I could have stormed into the room like a raging bull. I could have even tossed a blast of power at it and blown it right off the hinges. What I did was take slow, steady steps until my hand wrapped around the doorknob. I didn't think; I just shoved the door open, revealing a scene that I'd only seen inside my mind when afflicted with memories belonging to Arys.
For a moment, my brain didn't fully process what I was seeing. I could feel Kale at my back, bracing for my reaction. I struggled to make sense of what played out before my eyes.
All of the action in the room was happening on the king size bed. The scent of blood was heavy and the power ran so high that it was almost suffocating. It had to be why they hadn't sensed my approach.
Arys and Harley each hovered over the relaxed form of a dark haired woman. Her wrists were bound, but she didn't struggle, not anymore anyway. She was completely nude, and they were both clad in little more than silk lounge pants. Arys' fangs were buried deep in her throat; his hands, lost in her thick tresses. Harley crouched between her legs, delving into her pink folds with both fingers and mouth. My stomach turned, and the bile rose in my throat.
I stood frozen as my heart dropped, unable to look away. I barely felt Kale's cool hand on my arm. This is what Arys had been doing? He blocked me out so that he could revisit his past with Harley, and from what I could see, he was enjoying it.
The shock hit me, and it felt like time had stopped. When Harley lifted his head and looked at me, reality really hit home. His smile was pure evil. He didn't appear to be all that affected by my presence in his suite.
“I knew you'd come,” he purred in a low, seductive lilt.
I hated him. I hated every single fiber of his being. He loved this moment. A part of me wanted to crawl onto that bed with them, to taste that rich human blood they were spilling. Knowing that side of me was linked to Harley through Arys made my blood boil.
Arys lifted his head suddenly, as if just noticing my presence. Blood stained his fangs and lower lip. His eyes were wild, glowing with a feral light. There was no semblance of my Arys in those eyes. All I saw was a vampire lost in the throes of passion and death. The man who had confessed his love to me was absent.
“Alexa.”
My name was a growl on his lips. I'd seen enough. I couldn't stand to look at him another moment. I took a step back, stumbling into Kale who steadied me. Turning, I ran from the room, intent only on the rear exit door at the far end of the hall. Kale called my name, but he didn't pursue me. I ran, and I never stopped running until I reached my car.
The honking of horns and shouts from angry drivers when I darted across the busy street never phased me. I was in another world.
Driving was a horrible idea. I was a menace on the road. I knew I had to stop somewhere, but I had to get away from The Wicked Kiss. The very building seemed to laugh and mock me as I sped away. I went to the only nearby place where I knew I could be safe and alone with my thoughts. When I pulled up to the building where my office was, I was grateful to find it dark and empty. If anyone had been there, I wouldn't have gone in.
I let myself in, leaving the lights off. Though I was tempted to hit up Jez' office for the bottle of vodka I knew she had stashed in there, I went straight to my own office. I felt like I couldn't breathe. The need for air was almost panic inducing. I was an idiot, a blind fool who had made the mistake of falling for someone who wasn't able to handle it.
What I'd seen had hurt me more than I wanted to acknowledge. Arys was a vampire.